Dangerous Dancing
by semisweetie50
Summary: Okay, really bad title. Anyways... Based in S4 Crash Into Me Part 1, where Meredith says she is going to tell Derek that she doesn't want him to see other people. Well, in my version, she does. On time. Before anything with Rose happens. :) I always get so frustrated when something happens to them, so I decided to write a version where it doesn't. As much, anyway. R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** **Okay, so if you are a follower of mine, you will know I have about a hundred other stories that I haven't updated. And it's probably annoying that I am starting yet **_**another**_** one. But I just had to write this! And I have some other MerDer stories that I will post soon. And I promise I won't leave you hanging about the other stories, because I know I am ALWAYS so annoyed when I am reading a story and then get to the last chapter that is like a cliff-hanger or something and I look at the update date and realize they haven't updated in like, 2 years. And when I made my account I promised I wouldn't be that author. So I'm keeping that promise, and if you are a reader of my other stories, just be patient. I'm working on a new chapter for each one AT THIS VERY MOMENT. I am staring at my collection of opened files that have half-finished chapters in them. I be serious. Anyways, I'm sorry this chapter is so short, but I decided this would be a cool place to end it. (Well, ** **cool for me, horrible for you :P) Also, if you would rather have longer chapters but slower updates, let me know. And I will do my best to to long chapters and fast updates, but I can't make any promises. Also, if you have any ideas for the story, like always, I would love to hear from you. PMs are especially nice :) I love chatting with other writers and readers. Anyways, if you have read all of this, you are fantastic. So, quoting (sort of) Derek Sheperd: Today is a beautiful day to write stories! Hehe. Fan girl in me wrote that part. :)**

She sighed, and slowly started jumping around.

"This is so stupid," she thought. Then she started getting into it. She shook her hair, and waved her arms, and spun in circles, and didn't care how stupid it was. This was great!

"You know, I'm gonna tell him. I'm gonna tell him I don't want him to see other people."

"Good!" Cristina absently replied.

"I'm gonna tell him, and I feel good about it!" She continued.

"Dancing makes you brave!" Cristina encouraged.

GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA

Izzie was ranting to George, and he was complaining, when she heard the doorbell ring. She waited a moment to see if one of the girls' would get it, but they obviously didn't even hear it, based on the fact that they were still bouncing around in Mer's room. She sighed, and walked down the hall.

"Sure, I'll get it, no problem," she muttered.

She reached the door, and opened it, and was slightly surprised to see Derek standing there staring at the ground at six-thirty in the morning. He looked up when the door opened.

"Uh, Dere- I mean, Dr. Sheperd. What are you...?" She trailed off, not sure if she wanted to answer.

"Oh, it's just, I have Meredith's pager." He explained, looking a bit anxious.

"Oh, okay. Why?" Her eyebrows furrowed as she looked down and saw the pager in his hands.

"Uh, well, she was over at my place last night-"

She cut him off quickly. "Oh. Got it. Well, you can just go join the party," she grumbled. She realized he didn't understand. "Never mind. She's up in her room with Cristina. I assume you haven't forgotten where her bedroom is?"

He cleared his throat. "Uh, no. I'll go give it to her."

Izzie felt a little bad about making fun of him, but she was in a bad mood. She followed Derek back upstairs.

GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA

"Dancing makes you brave!"

Meredith was starting to worry she might make herself dizzy, but didn't care. When she swung her head up, she saw Derek standing there, but didn't stop dancing.

"Derek! I was just thinking about something," she started.

"Mer, you forgot your pager at my place," he said with a small smile as she jumped in circles and flung her hair all over the place.

"Oh! Thanks!" She twirled over and took it from his hand. "Hey, I wanted to tell you that I don't want you to see other people. I just want you to see me!" Meredith said over the music. Suddenly Derek's smile fell from his face, a shocked look replacing it. Meredith stopped dancing, realizing what she said. Izzie had been walking past, and froze in the doorway, turning to stare. Cristina had stopped, then chuckled. She turned off the music.

"Well, I'll leave you to it then." She said, hiding a smirk, as she pushed past Derek, and shoved Izzie, who was muttering "Oh my god. Did she really just-? Oh my god.", back down the hallway. Meredith waited a second, staring at Derek, who just looked at her. She looked towards the bed when he didn't do anything.

"Uh, well, I gotta go, I have rounds. Thanks for the, uh, pager." She grabbed her bag, shoved the recovered pager inside, and headed towards the door. Derek watched her. "Wait, Mer!" He said, running out of the room. He rushed down the stairs, hoping to grab her.

"No, Derek, really, it's okay. I didn't- I mean, I just-" she stumbled. She took a deep breath, still not looking back at him as he followed her, "I'll see you-" she realized she would most definitely be avoiding him all day. "I'll just, see you."

He just got to the door as she slammed it behind her. He sighed, and turned around, leaning back against the door. He saw Izzie and Cristina staring at him. Cristina looked a bit concerned, and Izzie bit back a laugh.

"Wow. Real smooth, Dr. Sheperd. So, should I make another pot of coffee?"


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Okay, so I was a little disappointed with the amount of views I had, yet no reviews! But once I got a notification about a follower, I decided that was encourage enough, and so I'm excited about this new chapter. So, a shout of to aplaceformyhead! Thank you so much! Okay, let me know what you think...**

**Oh, one more thing. Does anyone have any idea how to insert the dividing lines? I see some people do it, and some don't. If anyone knows how, please tell me. :)**

She couldn't believe she did that. Why would she do that? What was she thinking? And now he didn't say anything. Does he not want to see her anymore? She looked in her rearview mirror in the car where she was sitting in the hospital parking lot, trying to work up the courage to go in.

She'll just avoid him. Not talk to him. She knew this never worked, because it can't last forever, but she didn't think long-term. She took a deep breath, and nodded. I'll just not talk to him, and do so horrible on his rounds that it would be unfair to ask for her as the resident. She grabbed her bag, and stepped out of the car. She almost expected to see him standing there, but he wasn't. No one was. So she stood up straighter and walked inside.

"Meredith!" She flinched, and had the instinct to duck behind the plant beside the door, but then realized it couldn't be Derek- it was a female voice. She turned around, and saw Cristina walking towards her. She slowed down, and waited for her to catch up.

"So..."

"I'm not talking about it." Meredith said defiantly.

"Okay." There was a silence. Then... "But, Mer, you know he's-"

She cut Cristina off. "Nope. Don't want to hear anything. At all."

"Well, just let me know what the plan is."

"I'm just going to avoid him, and stay off any of his cases."

"Well, that's not gonna work." A new voice said. Meredith spun around, and saw Izzie walking towards them. She stopped on the other side of Mer, all of them staring at the elevator, waiting for it to arrive.

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, remember how you left this morning? Well, Derek didn't. He stayed for coffee. Cristina left, but I talked with him. Apparently he's gonna try and talk to you. And only one of you can achieve your 'mission'. And he seemed pretty determined."

Meredith shook her head. "Nope. He can't be more determined, because I'm fueled with embarrassment and mortification."

Izzie walked to the wall between the two elevators, and leaned against it. "Well, I think you should just hear what he has to say-"

"Look, she can do what she wants. Can we just stop talking about this?" Cristina inputted.

Izzies eyes widened, looking behind them. "We better, because McDreamy is approaching."

Meredith spun around. "Damn it!" She grumbled. He was checking his phone, but when he looked up, he saw her. "Damn it!" She said again. He sped up. She turned back to Cristina and Izzie. "I'll just take the stairs..." She said, and rushed off.

"Meredith!" Derek yelled behind her. "Meredith, wait!" He passed Izzie and Cristina, who gave him a sympathetic look and a glare respectively. He didn't notice, though. He was hurrying towards Meredith, who was disappearing through the stairwell door. He pushed through the throngs of people arriving at the hospital, most of whom either stared, still fascinated by the relationship, or rolled their eyes, completely used to it.

Meredith heard the door open above her, and walked faster, hopping up the steps two at a time. He heard her say her name, heard his footsteps catching up to her, but she just kept going. She slipped through the door to the second floor, and she hurried towards the hall where the residents' lounge was. She saw Izzie and Cristina get off the elevator and walk in. She listened as people complained as Derek pushed past them, and she finally reached the door. She went inside, and hoped that he wouldn't follow her in. Izzie was standing behind the door, and when Meredith walked in, the looked through the window in the door, to see if Derek was following.

"He's coming, fast."

"Lock the door!" Meredith hissed.

Izzie reached for the lock just as Derek reached the door. Izzie slammed into it, making it close for a moment, and locked it. Derek looked at her through the window, and she just gave him a what-else-am-I-supposed-to-do look. He sighed, as Izzie spun around.

"Okay, the door is lock-" Derek cut her off, by banging on the door. Meredith spun around, shuffling through the things in her cubby, muttering "can't hear it, can't hear it...", assuming he would stop soon enough. She was wrong.

"Meredith! Please, just unlock the door."

"No!" She shouted.

"Izzie, please unloc-" He started.

"Izzie, if you come within 2 feet of that lock, I will take you down." Normally, Izzie would have laughed, except Meredith looked- unbelievably- scary at that moment, so she decided to walk over to her locker.

Cristina leaned over to Meredith, and muttered, "Okay, so, uh, what's your plan now?"

"I'll just wait for him to leave. I mean, he can't stay there forever, right? He has cases, other things."

Cristina crossed her arms as Meredith pulled her scrub shirt over her head. "Meredith, we have rounds in five minutes, and it doesn't look like he's going anywhere within that time." Meredith looked back quickly, and saw him leaning against the door, obviously settling in. "And in case you haven't noticed, it's not just you your trapping in here. You're gonna get the attendings pissed at us, too. And we don't want the attendings pissed at us. We want cases. Good, long, bloody surgery cases."

Meredith sighed. "Well, isn't there any other way out of here?" She said.

"Nope. I'm can't believe the architects didn't plan for an attending to trap his resident girlfriend and her friends in the lounge, and make an escape route, though. We really should complain about that." Izzie said. Meredith and Cristina spun and raised their eyebrows. "What? I'm having a bad morning." Izzie said, tying her shoes. Meredith looked over to the door.

"Look! He's gone! I told you he has better things to do than sit there and wait for me to make a fool of myself in front of him again."

Cristina turned to look. Neither of them bought, so they walked over, and looked both ways through the window, then down, and then Cristina started cracking up.

"Oh, wow. This is too good." She gasped. Izzie smiled. Meredith stomped over and looked at the floor outside the door, and saw Derek sitting there, checking his phone.

"What the-! Damn it, Derek!" She pounded on the door, making him jump. He looked up, and smirked.

"What the hell are you doing down there?!" She exclaimed.

"Waiting for you." He stated simply.

"Well, stop it! People are staring!" He looked around him, and saw people giving him varied looks.

"They wouldn't if you would unlock the door."

"No!"

"Fine, we can have this conversation through it. But you know everyone is going to hear it-"

"_Shhh!_" She shushed him. "We aren't having this conversation at all!" She turned around, and walked out of his sight (which, to be honest, was that wide through the 4 inch window).

Izzie watched him lean back against the wood. She turned around, and went back to her locker, following Cristina.

"Look, I'm gonna go pee, and when I get back, you better be able to get us out of here." Cristina announced.

Meredith slammed her forehead against the shelf in her locker. "Damn it." She closed her eyes, thinking, and Izzie French-braided her hair. After a minute, they heard a noise outside their door. Izzie went over, and her eyes widened.

"Uh, Mer, you're gonna want to see this."

Meredith lifted her head. "What is it?"

"Just come here."

Meredith walked over, and looked outside. Crap. Alex was standing there, staring at Derek.

"What are you doing?"

"Waiting for Meredith."

"Well, just let me in, I'm late."

"Tell them that, they won't unlock the door."

"Well, what the hell did you do this time?"

"I didn't do anything!"

"Right." Then Alex looked up through the window. "Thank god. Izzie, Meredith, open the door."

Meredith cringed. "We can't."

"What do you mean, 'you can't'? Just turn the knob!" Alex exclaimed.

"I can't. Sorry, Alex."

His eyes widened. "Have you lost your mind? Rounds are starting!"

Right then, George came up behind Alex, and took in the scene. "Uh, I was sent to get you guys. So, what is this?"

Alex turned to him. "Sheperd did something to Meredith, who is ignoring him, and they locked the door to keep him out, but he won't leave, and I can't get in, and they can't get out."

Derek began to add, "_I _didn't do anythi-"

"Whatever you say. Just, go away, so we can get to rounds, you can get to your patients, and nobody gets pissed." Alex said.

"I really have to talk to Meredith."

George cut in. "Can't you just talk to her later? You know Bailey's gonna come get all of us in trouble if I don't come back with you guys soon."

At that, Cristina's head popped in between Izzie and Meredith. She laughed. "Seriously?" She said, shaking her head. "Look, Derek, I know you think you should sit here and wait for her to come out like some sappy, Romeo and Juliet, romantic thing, but we all really need you to move, or else we are gonna hurt your Juliet to get to rounds."

Meredith pulled them back. "Can't you two just push him out of the way and let me run ahead? I just need a couple seconds."

Izzie raised her eyebrows. "You seriously think Cristina and I can take him? No way. He'd just throw us off like feathers."

"Well, what else?" Meredith huffed.

Cristina grinned. "I know what to do."

She went over to her locker and grabbed a Sharpie and some paper, and wrote, 'Pull Sheperd out of the way in 10 sec. to let us get out. hold him back as long as u can.'

She looked at the two women beside her. "Ready?" They nodded. Cristina went over to the door and looked down, and saw Derek sitting there, with Alex and George leaning against the opposite wall. They waved their arms at them to get their attention. When they looked up, the held the note up to the glass. They read it, and nodded. Cristina held up ten fingers, then nine, to show the count down has started. After seven seconds, Izzie unlocked the door. Right when Derek heard the click and stood up, Alex and George rushed forward and each took an arm, dragging him out of the way. Derek was stunned for a second, giving an opportunity to Meredith, Izzie, and Cristina to rush out and towards the elevators, rushing onto an open one. At this point, the three boys were causing quite a scene. They let go right as the doors started to shut, and Derek raced towards Meredith, but didn't make it.

"Damn it!" He cried, hitting the steel with his fist.

Inside, Meredith took a breath. "Thanks, Cristina. That was brilliant."

"Yeah, whatever. You just owe me one."

The doors opened, and they rushed towards the group of residents traveling from room to room, hoping word of the incident wouldn't spread. Right.

**A/N: So, how was it? Tried to make it longer. I hope it was okay. I didn't love it, though. I have lots of plans for future chapters, but happy to hear suggestions!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Okay, I am soooo happy. Thank you guys so much! It was so fantastic to hear all of your comments and get notifications about follows and favorites. Really, it made me grin like an idiot. So, I decided to get a move on with this chapter. I'm having some school stuff (new school- enough said), but I will write as often as I can. And that's not an excuse, I just want to tell you, should you be interested. Also, BIG thank you shout out to CileSuns92, who gave a great review and said she really enjoyed it, and it just made me all warm and fuzzy, so thank you. Also, she helped me with the dividing lines, so thanks for that, too. Anyways, I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations!**

The elevator doors opened, and she watched as residents walked from suite to suite. Meredith took a deep breath, and walked forward.

"You really should just talk to him." Izzie commented in her ear. Meredith ignored her.

"I don't think so. I mean, what is she supposed to say?" Cristina replies (apparently, she thinks it was addressed to her).

"Well, she's going to have to eventually. And he seemed pr-"

Meredith cut her off. "Guys! We have already had almost this exact same conversation about twenty minutes ago."

"Yeah, minutes we should have been spending in rounds. Come on, this is mine." She rushed in front of them and entered the room. They looked over all the residents in front of them and saw Bailey standing there.

"Okay, this is Mrs. Matilda Jones. Who is presenting?"

Cristina shoved her way to the front, but George had already grabbed the chart. "Mrs. Matilda Jones, sixty-three, in for a thoracic aortic aneurysm. She presented symptoms of severe chest and back pain, thought to be a heart attack by her husband, who called 911. When she was brought in, an ultra-sound diagnosed her."

"Okay. Now, what is the problem we should most worry about occurring?" Bailey said.

Cristina's hand shot up in the air. Bailey sighed. "Yang."

"The aneurysm rupturing. Because of her age, and its size, it is much more likely to rupture, and cause too much damage."

"So, how should we proceed?"

"We keep a eye on her, give her blood-pressure medication, and get her into surgery as soon as possible."

"Very good. Here, go tell the nurses to get her on the OR board by tomorrow. And start her on the meds. The case is yours."

Cristina whispered a quiet "yes", and walked out the door towards the nurses station. Izzie and Meredith rolled their eyes, and followed their peers out the door and down the hall. After a few moments, Cristina came back and joined them.

As they were entering the room, Izzie's eyes widened. "Meredith we're in-"

"Hello, everybody." Said a chipper man's voice. Meredith cringed, and once again wished to hide behind something. She looked up and saw Derek standing there, smiling at her.

Izzie finished. "-the Neuro Wing."

* * *

Meredith shoved Izzie and Cristina in front of her. Izzie tried to turn around, but Meredith wouldn't let up, so Izzie just turned her head slightly and leaned back.

"Meredith, stop avoiding this."

"Why?"

"Because there is no point!"

Cristina butt in. "Oh, just shut up and yell at each other after."

"Okay, who will be presenting this morning?" Derek asked, oh-so-innocently.

Alex took the chart. "This is, uh, Mr. Charles Handon, thirty-seven, in for a- oh, wow."

Meredith couldn't help herself. "What? What is it?"

"He has- Dr. Sheperd, is this right?"

Derek grinned mischievously. "Indeed. Please, tell your fellow residents what this man is here for."

"Right. Um, this guy has an MPNST."

Only about three people in the group really understood what that was- Alex, Meredith, and Cristina. Meredith widened her eyes.

"Please, continue with the presentation."

"Okay. Um, had swelling and numbness of the shoulders and forearms, was brought into the ER two days ago by his wife, and an MRI diagnosed."

"Thank you, Dr. Karev. Now, I can see many of you don't understand what this is. Who can explain?"

Meredith worked really hard to resist- really, truly. But she couldn't help herself- again. Her hand shot up and she shoved her two friends aside. They silently laughed, after glaring at her.

"Yes, Dr. Grey?"

"It stands for Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumor."

"And why is this so surprising?"

"Because it is extremely rare, especially for a man so young. Only about 8 percent of tumors are located in the peripheral nervous system, and then most of those are benign." She mumbled the last part, realizing too late that she didn't want to get on a case with him. But this is a one in a million tumor! How was she supposed to say no to that? Still, she wished she had kept her mouth shut.

"Congratulations, you just got yourself on this case. I can show you the MRI and CT scans after rounds." He smiled at her, and handed her the file. "We will discuss treatment plans," as he walked past her towards the door, he quietly added in her ear, "and other things."

She spun around to glare at him, but he had already gone. "Damn it." She muttered.

Izzie walked up behind her. "Did you really just take his case?" She asked, grinning.

Meredith looked down at the file in her hand. "Yeah. I think I did."

* * *

"So, what are you gonna do?" Cristina asked.

"I don't know! I mean, this surgery is an incredible opportunity, am I supposed to just pass it up? Plus, he would never let me off the case now that I'm on. I'll just-" She stopped talking as soon as she rounded the corner, seeing Derek walking their way.

He smiled politely at them, with a hint of mischief. "Ah, Dr. Grey, just the person I was hoping to see. Could you come with me to take a look at those scans?"

Meredith cringed. She had forgotten that she was supposed to do that, and so she and Cristina had started heading to the nurses' station. Looks like Derek didn't forget.

"Uh, yeah. I guess so." She followed Derek, but looked back and gave Cristina a pleading look, who replied with a you're-on-your-own look. Since Meredith wasn't watching where she was going, she crashed right into Derek, who was unlocking the door. He fell forward, but was able to brace himself on the door, and simultaneously spun around in surprise to find Meredith falling against him. He quickly caught her.

"Oh my- Crap! Sorry, Der- I mean, my apologies, Dr. Sheperd," she quickly corrected herself. Cold and distant, cold and distant. That was the plan.

"Meredith," he sighed. "You-"

"No, no." She shook her head and as they stood there a moment, they realized he was still holding her against him and her arms were still around him. She awkwardly pulled away.

"Wait, Mer-"

"Let's just look at these scans?" She asked, but in a tone that said he had to say yes. She was mortified, because people were staring. She walked past him and into the room, and he followed her, and the people watching snickered, thinking about the fact that those two particular lovebirds were going into an empty room alone. But the slamming the the door gave them doubts.

Meredith spun around from shutting the door (possibly a bit harder than necessary), and looked straight to the scans, avoiding Derek's gaze.

"Meredith-"

"So, are these the scans?" She asked.

"Mer-"

_"Are these the scans, Dr. Sheperd?"_ she repeated, more intensely.

"Uh, yes. These are the scans. See, right here, in between the C2 and C3, is the tumor, which explains the numbness."

"So, what are we going to do?"

"Well, it's been growing rapidly, and if it gets much bigger, it could cause stress on the spinal cord, which could-"

"-cause brain damage," Meredith finished. "So, we take it out?"

"Yes. It will be a difficult surgery, because the veins and nerves have adjusted around it, so we will have to get a clear area before taking it out."

"And the nerves connect to...?"

"His upper back, shoulders, and arms."

"Okay, but what if we go in from a different angle?"

"The spine would get in the way." He said.

"But what if we took it from this side-" "You see, it can only-" They said simultaneously, both reaching up to demonstrate their point on the scans, and their hands met. Meredith tried to pull away, but Derek laced his fingers into hers and pulled her closer.

"Meredith, please..." He said.

"Derek, I di-" she started, until he lifted his hand up to her face to brush aside a stray piece of hair. She breathed out, and leaned closer. His hand cupped her cheek. She leaned against it. He smiled a soft smile.

"Meredith, I've been trying to tell you all morning-"

Suddenly, the door burst open, and Mark and the Chief walked in.

"No, I think it would be better if we did the grafts up his arm instead of-"

"But it's way too risky, and I-"

They looked up, and saw the position the two were in, and shut up. Mark had a smirk on his face, and Richard looked awkward.

Meredith pulled away quickly, stumbling back a bit until Mark reached out to steady her, which made her jump forward. She grabbed the file from the table, and started walking backwards out the door.

"So, uh, you were right. We should go in from that angle. I'll, uh-" she ran into the doorframe- "Um, I'll schedule the surgery. Bye, uh, Dr. Sheperd." She finally finished and disappeared from view. Mark and the Chief looked back to Derek, who groaned and leaned his head back against the light up board.

The Chief looked uncomfortable. "Um, I'll just talk to you later, Dr. Sloan." He said, and walked out. Mark, however, kept smirking.

"Really? In the scans room?" He said, raising an eyebrow. Derek groaned again.

**A/N: So, hope it turned out okay! Tell me what you think, and any suggestions! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So great to get all these notifications! Thank you! Okay, so, if you have any ideas, just let me know! **

* * *

They just had to come in at that moment, Derek thought, as he banged his head against the board.

"Seriously, what was that? It didn't look like a hot session in the scans room-"

"Oh, shut up, Mark. It wasn't. She's mad at me. I think...?"

Mark chuckled. Meredith and Derek's relationship had never made much sense. "Okay, what is she possibly mad at you about?"

Derek examined Mark, trying to decide if it was okay to tell him, then thought, 'to hell with it'.

"Well, this morning, I came to her house-"

"Why?"

Derek coughed. "Uh, to return her pager."

Mark held back a smirk, feigning confusion. "Uh, why'd you have her pag-"

"Shut up. Anyways, I went upstairs to her room, and she and Cristina were dancing, and then she just suddenly said that she didn't want me to date anyone else, that she only wanted me to date her."

"And what did you say?"

"I couldn't! She ran out of the room and has been avoiding me ever since! I don't think she meant to say it."

"I'm certain she didn't."

"Thanks for the vote of encouragement."

"No, I mean, she didn't mean to _say_ it, but she meant it."

Derek rolled his eyes. "Yeah, and you have so much intel on women."

"In fact, I do. So, isn't that what you wanted the whole time?"

"What, your intel on women?" Derek chuckled.

Mark smirked. "That, and an actual relationship- which, for the record, I totally don't get. Why deal with all the other things when she's offering just sex?"

Derek laughed softly. "And mockery," he said quietly.

"What?"

"Nothing. Anyways, yes, that's what I want. And it's not 'dealing' with the other things if you want them."

"Still don't get that. So, isn't she on your case? She can't exactly avoid you."

"I hope not."

* * *

Meredith rushed out the door and into the nearest linens closet, in case he came after her. What was she thinking?! She was supposed to be avoiding him, not staring into his McDreamy eyes like an idiot! She leaned her forehead against the door, squeezing her eyes shut, wishing she could go back in time and kick herself in the ass before she could blurt out such a stupid thing. She took a deep breath, and realized what they had been talking about before the cheesy romantic moment. The tumor! She was still sure that going in from the other angle would give that man a much better chance of living. She had just wanted to get out of that room as quickly as possible. In a while, she'll go back in and take a closer look at the scans.

Finally, she remembered what he had been trying to say before the Chief and Mark barged in- "_I've been trying to tell you all morning-"_ What? What had he been trying to tell me? That I'd had my chance, and now he needs to move on? That he's not interested anymore? Or... that he still wanted a relationship with her? She shook her head. She couldn't hope for things like that.

She sighed, started walking out of the room, when she saw Mark and Derek walking her way. She widened her eyes and immediately flew back into the closet, slamming the door in the process. Down the hall, she could hear Mark saying, "I think I found her."

She cringed. _Damn it._ She was not going to let a repeat happen from this morning. She burst out of the door, and started walking down the hall straight away, doing her best not to look back to see what Derek was doing. As she rushed down the hall, she heard footsteps rushing after her- again. _Shit. _When they caught up to her, though, she realized it wasn't Derek, but Mark.

"Oh! Um, hello, Dr. Sloan."

He ignored her greeting. "What the hell was that in the scans room?"

She heard Derek behind her, telling Mark to back off, but Meredith decided to fight back. "Why, I don't believe that's any of your business."

Mark smirked. "Well, since you were about to rip off my best friend's clothes, I do believe that makes it my business."

Meredith's face flushed. "That's so _not _what that was!" She exclaimed.

"But it _was _something?" He asked mischievously.

"Well, it was, I mean, it wasn't supposed- no, it didn't, it's not," she stumbled.

"Of course. Now I understand." He said sarcastically.

"Okay, I need to clarify something. Are we speaking as boss and employee, or as my-" she realized she didn't have a name for Derek. "- um, as Der- I mean, Dr. Sheperd's best friend?"

"Does it matter?"

"Definitely."

"Then I'm just Derek's friend for the next five minutes."

"Good. So, if you want to know so bad, just ask Derek."

"I did. And he doesn't know."

That surprised her- she didn't know what it was, either. "He didn't, like, plan that?"

Mark laughed. "I think your confusing me with Derek. He's the kind of person who just naturally has corny romantic moments with his friend-with-benefits," she blushed at that, "_I'm _the one who would plan that. Not that I would ever do that- I don't date people I-"

"Sleep with them." she finished. "Yeah, I'm familiar with the concept."

She furrowed her brows. "He didn't, uh, tell you what happened this morning, did he?"

"Oh, are you talking about the telling him that you want to date him part? Or the locking yourself in the residents' lounge part?" He chuckled.

She cringed. "Damn him."

"I really appreciated it. It truly made my day." He said teasingly. She hit him in the arm.

"Shut up."

"Back to the point. What was that in the scans room?"

She didn't want him to know anything- because telling Mark was just indirectly telling Derek. "It's still none of your business."

"Come on. I can keep a secret." He leaned in, turning his ear towards her.

She laughed. "Oh really. So, I can expect you to _not _immediately go report everything I say to Derek?" She questioned.

He scoffed. "Please, I would never do that. I'm not a gossip."

Meredith rolled her eyes. "If you weren't a gossip, we wouldn't be having this conversation. Good bye, Dr. Sloan." She spun around and started walking away. She heard footsteps behind her.

"Okay, wait. Just tell me, are you ever going to talk to him?"

"You are impossible!" She picked up her pace.

"Come on," he started, but she quickly slipped into the women's bathroom they were passing. He walked in after her, and the people passing by outside heard several screeches and saw Mark Sloan fall out of the door, with several dainty fingers slamming the door shut behind him.

* * *

She walked into a stall and leaned against the door. What is she going to do? This case was completely amazing, but she certainly didn't want anything to do with Derek. She'd love to see this tumor, though...

No. It's not like there is anything wrong with refusing a case, and there will be other cases. Maybe not this amazing, but still, it's not the end of the world. She can just hear about it from other people.

But she really felt like she was right about that different angle- would it be fair to deprive the patient from that opportunity? She shook her head. She's just a resident- she was probably wrong about it anyways. He'd certainly already considered it. Yeah. She took a deep breath, and went to find him to request being taken off the case.

* * *

Meredith found him at the nurses' station, writing in a chart. She walked up behind him, taking a deep breath. She tapped his shoulder.

Derek spun around. "Meredith!" He exclaimed. "I've been looking for you-"

Meredith cut him off. "Yeah, look, Dr. Sheperd, I've been thinking, and I want off the case."

He sighed. "Meredith, I really don't want you to do that just because we-"

She stopped him again. "I thought about it, and I don't really feel like I'm ready to handle this." She had thought this over for a long time- what excuse could she say that he absolutely couldn't refuse? Then she realized that she would have to say she can't handle it. He can't keep her on the case, because it would seem irresponsible, he would get blamed if anything went wrong because of her- it's the perfect excuse.

She could see him working through it, trying to find an argument. Finally, he sighed. "I think you can, and I encourage you to, but I guess I can't make you do anything..."

She inwardly took a deep breath. It worked. "I'm sure. Thank you, Dr. Sheperd."

"But Meredith, we still-"

Right then, her pager went off. Saved by the bell. "Oh, I've got to go. Sorry."

She spun around, and walked off towards the pit.

* * *

She just finished assisting in a trauma surgery from a motorcycle accident that took seven and a half hours, and was heading towards the residents' lounge. She passed the nurses' station on the way, and saw the file for the MPNST guy. She gazed longingly at it. Such a beautiful surgery it would be... She kept walking, trying to convince herself that it was the right choice. She'll get over it. Right?

* * *

**A/N: Okay, not much MerDer in this one, and I'm sorry about that, but I thought it was pretty good. Will Meredith be able to resist the case? Or will she go back, and endure a sickeningly awkward/romantic discussion with Derek? What will her friends think of all this? Tune in next chapter to find out! :P**


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